Tubing in Vang Vieng

Well we finally got to go tubing in Vang Vieng - and if you have read previous posts it was the one thing Dave and I were really excited about doing.

We went with the Canadian couple Kyle and Crystal, and Englishman named Glen, two more from England - English Dave and Leanne, and of course Dave and myself. We hired the tubes, got absolutely no safety briefing; although to their credit you can hire a lifejacket. With our tubes and assorted array of dry bags, 11 of us crammed into the back of a Songathew (ute) and headed up river 4km. The starting point s a bar, and several more bars overhang the riverside on your journey down. Alcohol and water don't tend to mix so its totally something that you would not expect to find anywhere else and certainly not back in NZ. At the first bar there was a swing to which you climb rather nervously up about 15m and get launched into the fast flowing current - and as you can see the water was muddy as. I had a go - of course - and was proud of myself. Im nor a waterbaby or like heights. At this point there were maybe 20 others at the bar ready to descend down stream. By the end of the day there were hundreds. After a bit of swinging we jumped in our tubes and headed downstream to Smile Bar. We had a drink, English Dave tried to perfect his somersault (he steadily got better with the aid of some expert advice and video analysis), and we had a tug of war in the mud path. Yummy! Our third bar, and the one we spent the longest at had a swing and a waterslide. Now these were fun - although Dave and I had to retire after several goes as our bodies were sore from the water entry. We had a couple of buckets (its just what you do alright!) and watched with humour as the lines grew long.

You could tell it was starting to get dark so we headed downstream yet again but just had to make one last bar stop. We played pool (with the cue being a piece of bamboo), petanque and Dave hussled the others at a round of slingshot. By this time it was truly getting dark so we jumped in our tubes and headed for home -only that we didn't get told where to get out. By this stage Dave was sharing his tube with another Canadian girl, a Dutch couple joined us, two Irish chicks and a Frenchman that wouldn't shut up. It was fantastic fun - so much that i heard a story that a couple of people went tubing down the river for 157 consecutive days - and i don't blame them. So that was a brief summary of the trip and hopefully that the videos show you kinda what it was like. What happened for the rest of the night is history.

In and around Vang Vieng - Laos

Well its like the 'tubing' capital of Laos, but the wet season is sinking in and it has flooded the river making the sport of tubing too unsafe. So what have we been up to? Well there are several things to do around thses parts other than tubing....

The first involves a mountain bike, some caves, a river and alot of mud. Yesterday (Tuesday) Dave and I hired out mountain bikes and went exploring on the outskirts of the town. We had to pedal across one of several little fragile bridges (the same one which was absolutely destroyed in last nights downpour), before we came to a series of paths. We biked along the countryside past farms (they're not like farms from NZ), crops, children hauling things from town to market and so on. The road either consisted of small boulders like a river bed or red dirt/clay that was now turned into puddles and mud. By the end of the day my white t-shirt (and my first outing in it) was brown! We explored three caves in toatal, all three you usually have to pay to enter but at none of them was someone collecting the $. In fact, all day we didn't even see any other people looking at any of the caves. The caves were amazing!! Beautiful crevaces and shaes led one past of the cave to another and as couple of them went further into the cliff face than what we were prepared to do. Some of the guide books even warn against travelling without a guide as travellers have been lost for days in the past. Fo one of the caves we had to ditch our bikes and wade through what may have been a tiny creek ankle deep in the past. It was up past my waist and flowing considerably fast. We made it across, went through a bit of bush and ended up at a lovely waterfall. Its all part of the adventure. On the way to the third cave (well we couldn't actually find it and its the one we had actually been looking for all day) my bike gears bent so the trip back to town was a bit harder. We washed our bikes in the river, at that point i felt like a Lao (where the river is used for almost everything and anything).

The second thing involves eating and watching FRIENDS. Lonely Planet summed it up well when it briefed the reader about Laos on page 267, stating, "Vang Vieng eateries will lure you under their roof with the display of hit comedy series on multiple TV's." Actually - don't quote me on the page # or the actual statement but its something to that effect. Every restaurant, and there's hundreds, play episodes of FRIENDS, The Simpsons or the Family Guy all day long. You simply wonder in, lax out on cushions and pillows on a stand above the floor, order something to eat, and watch one of the multile TV's. Great for the rainy season or when you're starving but hard to justify when its good out. Consequently i've now seen Ross's first failed marriage, the trip to Barbados, Mike and Phoebe getting married in the snow and Joey and Rachel almost getting together.

Other than that, its been a bit of reading, a bit of walking around town, and a bit of contemplating life.

Louang Prubang to Vang Vieng

Louang Prubang was a lovely place to visit - its French touch starts with freshly baked baguettes and jam in the morning to a walk around the towns many alleyways which have vast numbers of homes much like what you would find in a French vilage (im assuming here but will confirm with you sometime later in the year) and a visit to a museum or two in the afternoon laden with French language and scripture. The history is rich.

We visited the famous Pak Ou Caves, after a boat ride that backtracked two hours up the Mekong from the direction in which we had travelled down earlier. Our poor captain - after loosing our propeller along the way for the first time and after he stripped down into in blue underpants to replace it, it happened a second time just minutes later. This time he ventured up into the hills to buy one from a local village. The caves itself...well...involved a lot of walking up stairs...and about 4000 little buddha statues. It was ok, and as they say its the journey and not the end destination.

Most of our time in L.P was spent lazying around (now one of my favourite hobbies, along with dining out of course) reading books and walking the streets. Hiring a bicycle for the day was also very cool and you get to see much of the backwaters that you wouldn't necessarily otherwise see.

We left L.P on Sunday (yesterday) and headed for Vang Vieng, a small town that like most other places we visit relies solely on tourists stopping by for a couple of days en route to the capital. Our journey took about 5hrs in a minivan through and aroung some gorgeous landscapes and mountains. We passed hundreds of little clusters of houses on the way with people working and kids playing on the road side. The horn is used as a defence weapon to warn other cars, scooters, cows, kids, trolleys, chickens etc that you're coming and they should watch out. Interestingly enough i had to sit in the front seat, something that not even Lonely Planet would recommend. Like some of the food, its better off if you can't see what you're eating. This clause applies to driving also. We almost hit two cows, one was so incredibly close, and the trucks too seem to not mind if they are on your side of the road!

Well we arrived, caught a songathew into the small town and found a guesdthouse (GH). We spent yestarday r\arvo watching Family Guy and about 8 episodes of Friends (after walking around the town of course. All eateries play comedy seies in an attempt to lure travellers. One of the most overwhelming things with this is however that there is no market differential (that may not be the term) they play the same series and episodes. This problem, unfortunately, is all too common around SE Asia. They compete for the same thing but what they offer is undeniably the same. However, in saying that, its what they do.

So we are in Vang Vieng and wiull probably do some tubing in the local river tomorrow (its what the town is famous for). We would do it today but one of us has succomed to a spot of diarrhoea. Did you know that about 60% of travellers get it within 2 weeks of travelling. Anyway, enough of the pleasantries, im off to find something to eat.

Dont work too hard people!!

Laos - and the journey to Lounag Prubang

We have just spent the last two days on a magical journey down the Mekong River from the border of Laos / Thailand to Luang Prubang (Central Laos). We left Houx Yai on Tuesday morning, with the boat filled with about 60 of us travellers/foreigners or 'farang' as the locals called us. The boat ride had amazing views for the entire 300km trip - with rock formations, native bush, farmland, huts and villages, little fishing boats, nets and rods everywhere, water buffalo and a whole lot more. We stopped several times at what you would think were desserted banklines to pick up and offload villagers who would have bag loads of supplies.

We stayed the night at Pak Beng - the half way point of the journey. The boat was swarmed with local kids as soon as it docked and they had billboards of places to stay and would help carry bags up the hill. It was amazing to think that here in the middle of Laos this little village was accustomed to boats turning up and offloading travellers for the night who would spend up large on food and accommodation. They were use to it and they knew what to expect - and we didn't.

Dave and I made our way to a guest house - one of many - and along the way the price fell from about 50.000kip to 25.000kip (NZ$5). Its a competitive market out there! The room was okay. The village operates on generators which was cool with many of the restaurants having candles - how romantic. We dropped our bags and walked the street, there is only one with about 200m spanning with shops come houses and restaurants. We found a place to eat, had the local Beer Lao, which is nice. There was also the loudest thunder we'ver ever heard. We sat with a Canadian guy and two girls from Estonia. When the restaurant worker came around with Lao Lao (whisky made from sticky rice) is was custom for all diners to have a shot, or two. It was potent as!! Like turps mixed with moonshine and other various ailments. Its rude to say no to Laos and they take offence as they are very giving people. So we had it, and a couple of beers to wash it down, and made our way home at 10:30pm with the street pitch black being no power and we having little idea where our place was. This was after the worker fell asleep on the chair - a subtle hint to leave. Alas, we made it home ok.

We woke early the next morning (the last thing you want to do in miss the only boat outa here) and made our way down to the river. It was a 7hour journey East to where we are now. Arriving last night, we found a guest house, they are between a backpackers and a hotel, and quite frankly the way to go, and cruised the streets. We visited the Hmong (a hilltribe) night market, which sold anything from silver to t-shirts, art, woven bags etc. We found a makeshift vegetarian buffet for NZ$1, and tasty with lots of vegetables - somethings thats been hard to find previously.

Hmong Market Vegetarian Buffet Meal Dave near our guest house

Reaching the Laos border

Northern Thailand is way more cruisy, laid back and not so much in your face (well the Tuk Tuk drivers and stall owners are). It was a much better experience for the both of us and we suprisingly on the whole enjoyed it more than the islands of the south or the hive of activity that was Bangkok. One area in Thailand is is so contrast to the next that at times you would find yourself wondering where you were.

Last night (Sunday) we stayed in Chiang Rai with the highlight being a trip to the Hilltribe Museum and eating Mexican for tea. Ohh...and there was also wicked thunder and lightening - it was actually scary and made us jump. We caught a bus for a 3 hour trip East to the Thai / Laos border (Chang Khong). The bus ride, after about an hour waiting, was okay but you could tell that it had the potential of going so wrong. But, alas, we made it safely. At the border (which is actually the Mekong River) we departed Thailand trouble free (haha) and caught a long boat across to the East shoreline where we entered Laos - also trouble free.

My initial thoughts were: "hell this is gonna be an experience and a half"...The currency will take a bit of getting use to with like 10000 kip to a US dollar; but over here they use kip, US and Thai Baht so we're gonna have to be on our toes. We paid 90000kip for out room!! And a donut cost me 1000kip.

Tomorrow we board a slow boat to Luang Prabang, where we stop overnight at a little village half way. So, providing we get there safe....ill write again then....

Hurricanes to smash the Chiefs....Crusaders to stumble to a one point win over the Bulls....then Ma'a Nonu and the boys to rack up 40points in a thrilling win against them in a bumper crowd. My picks anyway....
Catch yo

Chiang Mai

Hey all
Well we arrived in Chiang Mai, north Thailand, yesterday (Friday) morning after a 14 hour train ride from Bangkok. We had a little sleeping cabin which was cozy, but poor old Dave is a bit bigger than, well, just about everything in these aprts of the world and consequently was a bit squished up in his cubicle. Nevertheless, we made it to the far north hassle free.

Chiang Mai is the capital of the north and rich in history. It is surrounded by hills and hill tribes and probably the most popular thing for travellers to do up here is to partake in one of the countless treks available. However, 'coz we are short for time we will have to pass on this.

We spent yesterday afternoon walking around the city - which is surrounded by a moat - and looking at some of the 300+ wots' (temples). They are incredibly amazing in architecture and design and covered with paintings. We also viewed the Chiang Mai Arts and Cultural Museum which was quite fascinating. They locked the doors and the big concrete wall surrounding it at 5pm and Dave and I had found a back exit out of the building and had to jump the tall fence. It was a bit of a laugh.

Last night we went to our first Muay Thai Kickboxing event. The 'kids' were like 15 and the heaviest was 56kg - much lighter than me - but boy can they go at it. There were a few knockouts. The part where we were sitting was full of foreigners, mainly English (dam they're everywhere and boy do they talk some shit i can say that!).

Today (Saturday) Dave and I thought that we had better have some time apart (its good for the relationship) so he skedaddled off this morning. I hired a bicycle for a couple of bucks and rode around the city. It was so much fun - i feel fitter now but took in a few petrol fumes along the way. The roads are crazy and there seem to be no road rules, just watch the hell out wherever you go. I made it on to a couple of highways by accident but managed to manouvere along and across them okay. I hadn't the slightest idea where i was going and i neglected a map, kinda fits the philosophy that Dave and I have for travelling - and boy its fun!! Try it! So this morning we made a plan to meet at the local Irish Pub at 4:30pm to watch the Hurricanes. It will be our first dose of rugby for over three weeks so should be good. After that we will head to the night market which by the sounds of things is massive - ohh too much shopping to handle - anyone want to sub in!?

So tomorrow we will travel to Chinag Rai which is closer to the Laos border and from there we will cross over before our VISA runs out.

And now i must apologise, after finally working out how to upload photos onto the blog, my USB doesn't seem to be working...so hang on there and ill try sort it out in the next wee while.

Peace to all,
Dane and Dave

Bangkok and Kanchanaburi

We spent Tuesday night in Bangkok. Man that place is masive. We spent the day, after arriving at 5:30am tiki-touring around the city in taxi's, public buses, tuk tuk's and the river ferry (see picture for a typical house on the river). The city is incredibly smoggy and there are many locals wearing scarfs and covering their face. We hired a tuk tuk for like 2hours (which cost $2 NZ) and visited a couple of temples, but unfortunately the Grand Palace was closed as the King was there :(. We also purchased a custom made suit each at a apecial promotion that Armani was having. We got measured up and chose the materials. Dave also got a shirt and a winter jacket ready for the English winter. Hopefully they will do their part to secure us a job! We stayed the night at a Thai house which is the home to some family friends that stayed with us in New Zealand 15years ago. It was a great experience..they had a maid..we slept on the lounge floor in front of the air con..and got taken out for dinner. Everywhere we went the story was told (in Thai but we could make it out) that we were from NZ and visiting. Dave and I also went to the night mnarket - Pat Pong - got harrassed by stall owners and club workers. Poor old Dave sticks out so i just follow on behind trouble free.

We came by bus yesterday (Wednesday) to Kanchanaburi - famous for the Bridge over the River Kwai / Death Railway. In 1930/40's, the Japanese forced hundreds of thousands of POW's to build this railway that links Myanmar (Burma) with Thailand. During the building of the railway, over 100000 POW's died by exhaustion, malnutrition and from diseases. Its an amzzing story and we spent a couple of hours at the museum reading about it. You can see the bridge on the left and the war cemetery on the right. It was pretty touching!

We stayed the night at an amazing guest house - Jolly Frog, right on the river Kwai. We are about to bus it back to Bangkok (2hours) and then make our way to the train station where we will go overnight to Chyinag Mai - some 10plus hours away. We are having a fabulous time (apart from me having the cold). We are trying lots of different types of foods (most of them spicy) and enjoying the sights and sounds (and smells).

Hope everyone out there is well!

Dane and Dave

Thailand.... beaches, sun, scooters and bus rides

On Saturday we went to the Full Moon Party. Famous for its large numbers of party goers (90% of them foreigners) and buckets of alcohol - it was an amazing spectacle!! We arrived by ute there at 10pm and there were thousands of people walking around, many in fluoro colours. We immediately got a drink...and headed for the beach. There were like 20 bars all in a row along the beach each playing a different piece of music and selling an array of drinks. You simple pick your potion and they fill the bucket up. With the sea right there many made a dash for the water and to relieve their bladder. In case you were wondering, just about everywhere you go you have to pay to use the labatory. At one stage there was fire on the beach, and i just couldn't let the opportunity to jump fire go by. Dave got a good picture, and sand was in my hair until yesterday (Monday). So after many hours of dancing, walking and scanning the sealine, we headed for home at about 5am. Definitely recommend this night to anyone.

Over the weekend we've been staying on the island of ko phangan mostly just chilling out doing nothing but reading books and shooting around the island on a scooter we hired and poor dane got a little sunburnt and has glowing knees! while the scooter was great to have and very cheap to hire and run we got totally screwed over when we returned it! ALWAYS CHECK FOR SCRATCHES before you take it! for 3 tiny little scratches on 3 panels the guy was trying to make me pay close to 8000 baht like $400. this was this morning at 9am after getting home from a full moon party at 5am and increadably hungover - Dave was not in the mood! it got to the point where Dave was basically yelling at the guy. haha They were both pulling on Dave's passport as he had it for the hire i thought it was going to tear! anyways we ended up paying 5000 baht for the damage as i was a little stuck after reading the fine print over and over but should be able to claim it on insurance. So when i went back to our room to tell dane, who was still in bed and oblivious to it all, he was not happy and was ready to open a can of whip ass. haha it was a great scam and they played their part so well it was a pleasure to watch even if it did cost us several hundred dollars!


We stayed Sunday night at Koh Samui, unfortunately were only able to stay there for 24 hours, and on Monday lunchtime we left for Bangkok (where we are now). After a ferry ride, several hours of waiting around, and a 10 hour bus ride, we arrived in the middle on Bangkok at 5:30am. They literally just drop you off in the middle of streets. Its now 7:30am and we just had subway for breaky and are about to head down the river to some Thai family friends. We plan to stay one ot two nights in Bangkok before heading north, most probably to the bridge over the river quay before making it to Chiang Mai and then on to Laos.

Sorry i haven't had the chance to upload more photos...it takes alot of time on these computers and so will hopefully get a chance to before long. Go the Hurricanes, the Warriors and the mighty Manawatu Jets!!!

Peace to all....

We made it...

Just incase you're all wondering - we're still alive. And just incase you're wondering - we made it out of Malaysia safely. And just incase you're wondering - we were allowed in Thailand (albeit for 15 days). Our journey from Panang in Malaysia saw us move north and across the border into Thailand. All the talk about customs and immigration putting the hard word on foreigners and scrutinising them - well that was just not the case, not that day anyway!

Our first impressions of Thailand...well....it was raining, the only english words we saw for miles were the logos of multinational companies such as Coca Cola and Toyota. Far less English is spoken - and the written language is full of curves unlike Malay where they chuck in English words to make sense of it. There were hundreds of utes and scooters (no helmets and fast speeds in the middle of the road). Thousands of taxis, except that they are your old hilux ute with a cage on the back and seats. People toot constantly, and for all sorts of things, for telling you tom move, to warn you if you want a ride in the taxi, and prob for many other reasons also. The food is great - and their way of eating is incredibly inclusive. You get a bowl of rice each and put the other dishes in the middle. Simply grab something from the middle - chuck it in your mouth - and top it off with rice.

Our first night was in Hat Yai, a transport hub. It was pissing down with rain but we stayed at a cheap little guest house. The next day (and now we don't remember dates or days, just orders), we got a mini van which was kitted out with karaoke gear to Krabi, on the west, and caught a ferry to the Island of Ko Phi Phi. Its an amazing sight, you may know it as the place that got hit by the Tsunami in 2004! Rebuilt now - it is full of foreigners and the shops which attract them. I say them coz me and Dave are different, i think! We stayed on top of a hill - coincidentally - swum in the sea (although theres alot of rubbish around) - actually we are going to Koh Samui tomorrow - and appraently there are 50tonnes of rubbish produced a day there!! We were only at Ko Phi Phi for 14 hours but loved it. Had a beer at dusk with fire throwers to one side. Warm as too! We then travelled East on buses and ferries (ohh so much travelling - but worth it) until we reached the destination that we are now - Ko Phanghan. Also very touristey - it just so happens that tomorrow (Sat) is the full moon party - some of you may know what that entails. We spent today on a scooter travelling the rough roads, the steep hills, and battling with other scooters and vehicles. Its an amazing experience and many of the locals know the roads so well but you can imagine what they look like when a whole lot of foreigners on scooters hit the roads. Mums perhaps shouldn't read that last sentence or two. Late warning i know.

So tomorrow as i said is the full moon party, then we head by ferry to Koh Samui, stay there a night then we will likely catch a train on Monday up to Bangkok.

So summing it up - we're spending lotsa money, getting sunburnt, sweating all the time from the immense heat, and having a great time. Lots of laughs along the way at the little stuff which i apologise is hard to relay in this method - so - try and imagine - or better still - jump on a plane and head on out.

Carpe Diem everybody

Penang...

Selamat datang (welcome)

Penang is an island west of Malaysia and just south of the Thai border. We arrived by bus from Cameron Highlands (which we were sad to leave), and this bus ride also had its dramas. We stopped for about half an hour as it appeared as though they had sold too many tickets, but, in the end a couple of locals were trying to scam a free ride. Buses don't run on time, nor do they stop at proper bus stops. We got let off in the middle of a lane, walked to the ferry, and crossed the straights over to Penang.

It was hot but after a short walk across the town we found our recommended hostel, 75 Travellers Lodge. Its a good location and the rooms are only $5NZ a night which is really good. Staying in the middle of Chinatown seems to be the best location wherever we are. Its so busy, and there are always interesting things going on. We went to the local shopping mall yesterday and its sooo big! All the shopaholics would love it! We went to our first movie - 'Fast and Furious 4' (in English but with Malay and Chinese subtitles) for $4NZ but right outside there are about 20 shops selling the same movie for cheaper than that. Its crazy - its a case of if you want it you can find it.

On Friday night i woke up at midnight with a pain in my stomach. We ended up catching a taxi to the local hospital (once he understood that thats where we wanted to go). It was an interesting process - you pay and then collect a tcket and wait to be called up. I was called up and seen and was diagnosed. It turns out that i haven't been drinking enough fluids and have something like a kidney stone. I was given a whole lot of drugs (including a needle) and told to drink lots. The condition is apparently comparable to giving birth - and boy i hope it goes and doesn't ruin the trip. All part of the experience as i would say.

They have some wonderful cuisine in this part of the world. Last night for tea we had a bread loaf with chicken curry wrapped up in tinfoil inside. Yummy! Today Dave had a sausage donut - like a sizzler wrapped in a sweet donut - crazy! Walking the streets is particularly interesting. Every step you take there is a different food stall - and - the health inspectors back at home would have a field day! you just have to close your eyes and point at something (and hope that youll like it) and do as the locals do. Dave loves the stalls and the way of eating over here (little and often) whereas im still getting use to it. We just had to try burger king last week in Kuala Lumpur :).

Well on Tuesday we are catching a mini bus over the border to Hat Yai. From there we will go to Phuket Island. Hopefully we can make it across the border as when we arrived in Malaysia we didn't get our passport stamped....so please cross your fingers for us on Tuesday night (your time).

Well thats all for now. Please send through your thoughts on the blog and what you're up to!

Terima Kasih (thank you)